


Sanders Sides Soulmates AU

by gothvirgil



Category: Sanders Sides, Thomas Sanders
Genre: But Not Much, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, M/M, Not Beta Read, Other, Sanders Sides (Video Blogging RPF)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-21 19:50:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14292168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gothvirgil/pseuds/gothvirgil
Summary: Everyone has a soulmate and on their thirteenth birthday the name appears somewhere on the skin. Logan, Roman, and Patton are all soulmates and they're wanting to find their final soulmate, Virgil, but they don't know anyone in the headspace with that name. And Virgil is trying to cope with Deceit's name on his skin. But Logan thinks something might be wrong.





	Sanders Sides Soulmates AU

**Author's Note:**

> Message: I wrote this fic shortly after Deceit was announced, and we didn't know much about him. At this time I believed Deceit was a villain. But now that more time has passed and I've given Deceit's character more thought, I no longer think he is the bad guy we all originally thought him to be. So while I do not regret this fic, as I do not believe it is badly written, I just want to make it clear that I now do not believe Deceit is a bad guy and if I had written this fic now instead of back then Deceit would be portrayed differently.

Every person has a soulmate. Their name is carved into the skin when they turn thirteen and it's up to them to go and find the special person. Thomas turns thirteen in an hour and the Sides are getting giddy. Patton and Roman are jumping up and down, anxiously watching the clock and having Thomas check constantly to see if a name has appeared yet. Logan will admit he's curious, but he really just wants Thomas to study for a quiz coming up. But, he too, has a big smile on his face and can't help but also check Thomas for that special name. 

It's after midnight and still no name. Patton is getting antsy and Roman's getting impatient. Thomas has nodded off to sleep. It's a school night so, with Logan's coaxing, Roman and Patton don't wake him up. Patton suddenly squeals in surprise, as there's a tickling feeling on his shoulder, as though a butterfly was brushing against it. He looks down and sees three names written on it. Logan, Roman, and Virgil. He looks up at the other two traits in shock. He has _three_ soulmates and two of them are his best friends. Roman and Logan have the feeling, too. Roman checks his forearm and Logan checks his collarbone. The three stare at each other, there's so many thoughts running through their heads. They're soulmates. Who's Virgil? He has to be one of the dark sides but surely _they_ wouldn't end up with a dark side. But that doesn't matter to Patton right now. He squeals and jumps into Roman's arms and motions for Logan to come join. Logan complies, and they're all extremely happy. 

 

Not everyone is excited, though. Two hours to midnight and Virgil is freaking out. "W-what if Thomas doesn't have one? What if I don't have one? What if they hate me? What if-"

"Virgil!" Deceit snaps, causing Virgil to flinch and shut up. "I'm  your soulmate, isn't it obvious?" he coos and gently puts his hand on Virgil's cheek. He instinctively flinches away but tries his best to relax into Deceit's touch. 

"Yeah... yeah you're right, who else could it be?" he asks. But he's still terrified. A part of him doesn't want Deceit to be his soulmate, and he doesn't know why. 

"I sense your hesitation," Deceit hisses. "Am I not good enough for you, Virgil? Have I not treated you well, are you not grateful? Do you want it to be Logan or Patton or Roman? Surely not. They hate you, you're nothing to them but a nuisance."

"I...I know..." Virgil whispers. "I love you."

"I love you,too," Deceit says back. Virgil looks up at him desperately. Deceit always speaks in lies, but he's perfectly capable of saying the truth. He told Virgil he'd never lie to him, but that in itself could have been a lie. 

"Are you lying again or do you mean it?" he asks. He immediately regrets it as Deceit coldly glares at him. 

"Are you doubting me?" he asks calmly. Virgil is terrified as Deceit motions one gloved hand to the other, hinting that he's about to take the glove off. Deceit plays with the hem and Virgil whimpers and backs away. 

"N-no! I-I promise! It's just that you-"

"Just that I what?" Deceit hisses and Virgil starts to tear up as Deceit takes off the glove. 

"I'm sorry!" he shrieks, shutting his eyes and waiting for the blow. But it doesn't come. He slowly opens his eyes and Deceit is staring at him, emotionless.

"Go to sleep, Virgil," he says. "I'll prove I'm your soulmate in the morning." 

 

Deceit watches Virgil sleep, getting impatient. There's still no sign of a name appearing on Virgil's skin and he needs it to happen while Virgil is still sound asleep. He knows he's not Virgil's soulmate, there's no possible way, but he needs Virgil to think he is. Finally, he sees a name appear on Virgil's collarbone. Then another. Then another. He reads them and he's furious. Patton, Roman, and Logan, those fools? He's doing a Virgil a favor by doing this. He makes sure Virgil is still fast asleep and then puts a hand over his mouth. He tricks Virgil into thinking he's having a pleasant dream, that he's happy, and then prepares to get rid of the names. 

 

When Virgil wakes up his jaw hurts. It stings and it hurts to move his mouth, it even hurts to yawn. He gets up and when he sees himself in the mirror he almost throws up. There, right on his jawline, is the name _Deceit_. He'd never heard anything of soulmate marks hurting, but he supposes that since he's never talked to anyone with experience how would he know?

"My, my," Deceit smirks, appearing behind Virgil and scaring the poor boy half to death. "Now what did I say?"

"You were right," Virgil whispers. Deceit smiles. 

"Of course I was," he gives Virgil a quick kiss on the cheek. "I have some business to take care of today. I'll try to see you later tonight."

As soon as Deceit leaves tears stream down Virgil's face and stings his jaw. Deceit is his soulmate, why does that make him feel sick? Deceit is all he has, and all he'll ever have. Deceit is the only one who will ever accept him. The others sides will never want him around. He's just trying to protect Thomas, he just wants what's best for him, but the others refuse to see that, especially Roman. He curls up into a ball, sobbing and panicking. His hands run though his hair and pull at it, almost pulling it out. He scratches at his scalp, not caring if he draws blood. Eventually he tires himself out so he stops crying, but he doesn't move from his position on the floor. He stares there, not having the energy to move, so there he remains.

 

It's his first confrontation with Roman, Patton, and Logan since Thomas' birthday and he can feel their eyes staring at his jaw. He clenches his fist and focuses on the task at hand. "Thomas can't go to the school dance!" he argues. 

"Oh yeah, because he might dance, meet someone new, hang out and laugh with friends, and have a good time?" Roman asks exasperated, hate in his voice. He throws his hands up in the air causing Virgil to flinch and Roman doesn't even seem to notice, but Patton and Logan surely do. 

"No, but what if people stare? What if he dances and looks absolutely stupid? What if he messes up somehow? What if his friends ditch him-"

"They're not going to ditch him," Logan interrupts, trying to calm the trait down with reasoning."They're the ones who offered for him to come with them. And it's a middle school dance, everyone looks stupid when they dance."

"I... I just...I-" at the last word he clamps his hand over his mouth. His voice did that thing again, turn deep and distorted as it only does when he's truly strung out. Thomas is now staring in the mirror, freaking out and pacing. 

Deceit appears in the corner and before any of them can argue with him he makes Thomas pull out his phone and text back  _Sorry, my mom needs me to help her around the house._ "I'm on your side, Anxiety," he winks. 

"R-right, of course you are... thanks..." he mutters. He won't make eye contact with anyone and he fumbles with his hands. 

"Deceit what the heck?" Roman roars. Virgil flinches and backs away. Roman doesn't notice, Deceit just smirks, and Patton stares at him. 

Deceit shrugs. "I totally wasn't getting bored of all the arguing."

"This could have been his chance to meet someone new! Meet a cute... girl?" Roman trails off and the last part sounds more like a question than a statement. "Ugh, thanks Anxiety, you've ruined everything, again!" 

"Now, Roman, don't go blaming it all on-" Patton starts. 

"You're right, it's also Anxiety's soulmate! Deceit, stop interfering with everything, you have no right-"

"No, I don't," he scoffs, and Roman begins to nod in agreement before realizing what he's truly saying. "I'm not as important of a side as you are. Anxiety is, though." The other's jaws drop and they stare between Virgil and Deceit. Virgil starts to panic, did Deceit slip up? Did he mean it? 

"Deceit-" his voice is even more distorted and deep, and he cuts himself off when Deceit glares at him. The other sides are staring at him, he starts to panic and tears well up in his eyes. So he runs off. He runs to his room and locks the door. Deceit can't come in, even if he insists. Well.. yes... better to let him in...

He curls up into a ball against the door, sobbing. Roman's right, he ruins everything. Deceit is right, he's not important. His thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door and he gasps, jumping up and hand shaking on the doorknob before backing away. But then a gentle voice calls out. "Anxiety it's just me, kiddo." 

He hesitates to open the door but he finally decides he should. He wipes his eyes, hoping he can make himself look decent, before opening the door. Patton gives him a sad smile. "May I come in?"

"Yeah... yeah sure..." he hesitates, shifting so Patton can come in. He closes the door and Patton sits down on his bed. 

"Don't listen to Roman," he says. Virgil hesitantly sits down next to Patton and crosses his legs. He doesn't make eye contact. "He can be hasty and dramatic, but you don't ruin everything, Anxiety. You're just expressing your feelings, opinions, and concerns and those are just as important as everyone else's." 

Virgil gives him a small, forced smile and tears well up in his eyes again. He finally looks up at Patton. "thanks, Pat... that... that really means a lot to me."

"Would you mind if I..." Patton trails off but gestures to Virgil's jaw. Virgil shakes his head and Patton gently reaches out and runs his thumb over it. Virgil blushes as Patton cups his face. "Strange. Mine doesn't feel like that, and neither do Roman's or Logan's." 

"Is... is something wrong with me?" Virgil asks. Patton's eyes widen. 

"No! No, of course not! I just didn't expect that, that's all," he says, his thumb trailing over the name again. 

"Who's... who's yours?" Virgil asks. 

"I have three," Patton answers, causing Virgil's jaw to drop. "Roman, Logan, and... someone else. I don't know who it could be, maybe it's a side that already exists, or maybe it's one that will come later. Who knows."

"Wow... you are Logan and Roman's soulmate, as well?" he asks. Patton nods. 

"We all have each other's names, as well as the same mystery person. We were all made for each other. Though none of us know who the other is," he explains. 

"Wow... you're lucky, Pat, having soulmates you actually lik-" he stops himself. He never knows when _he'll_ be listening. Patton smiles sadly. 

"Things will get better for you, kiddo. I promise."

 

"Virgil if you step out of that door you are _in for it_ next time I see you," Deceit snarls, making Virgil shake and whimper. He's already left Virgil with bruises on his arm from grabbing onto him so tightly. Virgil's hand hovers and trembles over the doorknob and he can hear Deceit fuming. "Do it, Virgil, I dare you. They'll laugh at you, treat you as though you're worthless. You've seen how they feel, all you do is get in their way."

Virgil has been hanging out more and more with Logan, Roman, and Patton. He's been getting more and more involved in the video making process with Thomas. And sometimes he does have those thoughts, feeling he's not good enough for them and that he ruins everything, but every time he expresses these concerns he's met with gentle murmurs and reassurance with hands running through his hair. 

Virgil has gone to bed crying more than once because he wonders if he might possibly be the mystery name on their skin, but it can't be possible because surely their name would be on his skin, too. He feels completely wrong, feeling towards them as he should feel towards his soulmate. He often goes to sleep sobbing, fingers tracing over Deceit's name on his jaw. 

It's as though he's made of glass and every time he's with Deceit he puts another crack in him. And Virgil is at the breaking point, he can't stand it anymore. 

As Thomas has gotten older Deceit has spent less and less time around the others, so Virgil has made the others his safe space where he goes to be away from Deceit, which is often. Luckily none of them question why Virgil is afraid to be alone, why he's always clutching onto one of them as though he's scared of something, which he is, and none of them seem to mind when Virgil asks if he can sleep in one of their rooms with them instead of his. 

"N-no," his voice is distorted and he hates it, he can't hide that he's scared. "They... they love me, we're best friends..." and before Deceit can make him crack again he leaves Deceit's room and runs to the end of the hallway. His hand traces the bruises that Deceit had left on his arm, it hurts to touch. Tears brim his eyes and he slowly makes his way downstairs where he sees the others lounging on the couch. It makes Virgil's chest hurt, they're all cuddled up on the couch, talking about god knows what. He wants to be there with them, cuddled up with them and kissing them. They stop when they see him and smile at him, motioning for him to come sit next to them. 

"Are you alright, Anxiety?" Patton asks. 

"No," is all he says. 

"Come here," he says, opening his arms up. Virgil crawls over and sits in his lap, cuddling up to him. And as soon as Patton wraps his arms around him he breaks down sobbing. But they're all there to comfort him, whispering and murmuring, running their fingers through his hair and rubbing his back. He feels so safe with them, and he wishes he could never leave. 

 

They shouldn't be doing this. They aren't soulmates but here they all are, on the couch cuddling and kissing. Virgil's mind is reeling as he kisses Roman. What about their fourth soulmate? What would they think? What- he's brought out of his thoughts by Logan pressing a soft kiss to his neck, causing him to hum happily and cuddle up to him. Patton giggles and runs his hand through Virgil's hair. They all love to pamper him, they treat him so well. He loves it but at the same time it makes his heart hurt, he's not their soulmate and the moment they find their fourth and missing piece this will probably all end. 

There's no heat to the kisses. They're light and soft, and all four of them are giggling and whispering. Logan goes lower down Virgil's neck until he reaches his shirt collar so he adjusts it so he can easily access Virgil's collarbone. Virgil is so happy, Deceit never treated him like this. Oh, how wrong it is for him to feel this way towards people who aren't his soulmate. 

"Anxiety, how'd you get that scar?" Logan asks, his fingers lightly tracing over the scar from his collarbone. 

"I... I don't know, honestly," he answers, blushing. "It just kinda showed up one day but I didn't think too much of it...." he trails off with the way Logan is staring at him, the cogs in his brain turning and he's deep in thought. Eventually Logan just gently presses a kiss to Virgil's jaw, right on the place where Deceit's name is. 

 

"My name is Virgil!" he announces, quickly looking at the others for their reaction. They're going to think it's stupid, he's sure of it. They're going to laugh. But instead Roman and Patton stare at him with... shock? Confusion? Relief? Logan's face is blank but his eyebrows are furrowed and he taps his arm methodically. Their reactions make his heart sink so he looks to Thomas instead, who is smiling warmly. 

" _I_ think it is an awesome name," Thomas says. Virgil gives him a small smile but his eyes wander back over to the others again and his mind starts to race. Are they going to make fun of him after Thomas leaves? Will they laugh?  He's so deep in thought that he doesn't realize that Thomas had gotten out of the headspace and that the others are approaching him. He yelps and flinches away when Roman puts his hand on his shoulder. 

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," he says gently. He pulls up his sleeve and shows his forearm to Virgil. There on his arm are the names Logan, Patton, and- Virgil gasps. It's his name. He traces over it lightly, his head is spinning and he feels like he can't trust his legs to keep him up anymore so Roman gently leads him to the couch. 

Patton cuddles up to Virgil and says "Kiddo please tell us what you're thinking."

" _H-how_?" he asks. "What about De-"

"Virgil," Logan interrupts, causing him to melt. He loves the way his name sounds coming from Logan. "I think I know what happened." he traces over the name on Virgil's jaw and frowns. He flinches when Logan's expression turns angry and he grips onto Patton desperately, closing his eyes and waiting for Logan to strike out. But instead, Logan gently cups his face and gently guides him to look at him again. "I'm not going to hurt you. I am not angry at you, I'm angry at _him_."

"Why... what does he have to do with-"

"There's a reason yours looks different from ours, and why you randomly have a scar," Logan begins. "I have reason to believe that Deceit did it himself. That scar on your collarbone, look, it's the same length as my list of names. And the reason the name on your jaw looks different is because Deceit _carved that in himself_. He is not your soulmate, we are."

"I'll kill him," Roman snarls. "I'll kill him for what he did to you, he can't get away with this and-"

"Roman, calm down. Now is not the time," Patton says gently. 

Virgil stares at all three of them, tears welling up as his fingers trace the scar on his jaw. "I...I..." he wants so badly for it to be true, but what will Deceit think, what will he do?

"Virgil," Roman says, causing him to gasp. The way Roman says his name is so perfect and tears run down his face as he desperately grabs Roman and kisses him. Roman doesn't hesitate to kiss back and Virgil feels Patton rub his back. 

"We're... we're soulmates," he says breathily as he separates from Roman, laughing through happy tears. 

"Yes, we are," Roman says gently. Patton whines, he's gotten barely any attention, so Virgil cuddles up to him and Roman kisses his head. Virgil's heart feels so full, but then he remembers the name on his jaw and he flinches. 

"What do I do about... you know," his hand traces over the scar and he feels like throwing up. 

"We can shapeshift," Logan says. "Perhaps you can fix your appearance and possibly get rid of the scars." Virgil nods and shuts his eyes He's never changed his appearance before, he's only changed as Thomas has changed. But he focuses and once he thinks he might've done it, he opens his eyes and looks at the others. He puts his hand up to his jaw and there's no scar. He pulls his shirt collar down to reveal his collarbone, and there it is. The actual names of his soulmates. Logan, Patton, Roman. Tears fill his eyes and he starts to cry happily again. 

"Logan it worked!" he exclaimed. He's cried so much today but he doesn't care. Roman kisses his hand and they all stare sat the list on Virgil's collarbone. 

"We're soulmates," Patton says happily, cuddling up to Virgil and gesturing for the others to join. Virgil's crying happily, almost uncontrollably. He feels so complete here with his three soulmates. All traces of Deceit are gone, and Deceit might even leave him alone now. But Deceit is the last thing on his mind as he cuddles up to his three soulmates as they begin to talk about whatever is they can think of to talk about. He no longer has to wish and dream about them, he is now a part of them and they are a part of him. He looks at the three of them and smiles. He's never felt so complete in his life. 


End file.
